MCSO: Woman drove intoxicated with interlock device

A Fountain Hills woman is facing aggravated DUI charges stemming from an arrest in November, when she allegedly drove while intoxicated after having her son breathe into her ignition interlock device to start her vehicle, according to the records from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.

Nicole Montez, who was 42 at the time of the incident, was arrested at her Fountain Hills home on Nov. 27 after Maricopa County Sheriff's Office detectives detected an odor of alcohol on her breath after she had driven home, according to a report from the sheriff's office.

Montez called authorities because she said she feared her ex-boyfriend would damage her home after she received text messages from him in which he said had a handgun at the residence, according to the report. Montez had drank two beers at her parents' home before she drove to her residence to meet detectives.

When Montez arrived at the residence with her son, who was 11 at the time, detectives noticed a strong odor of alcohol on her breath and that her vehicle was equipped with an interlock device, according to the report. She allowed detectives inside to search for the handgun, but they did not locate it.

While Montez's son remained inside the house, detectives asked her if she had been drinking, and she told them she drank two beers at her parents' house, according to the report. Montez told detectives her son offered to breathe into the interlock device to start the vehicle because he was also concerned for the safety of the residence.

Montez told detectives she knew driving under the influence was wrong and asked whether there was any way she could avoid receiving a DUI, the report said. Detectives noticed six signs of impairment after she consented to a field sobriety test, the report shows.

Montez resisted arrest by detectives and split her lip while she was being arrested, according to documents from the sheriff's office. She was taken to Scottsdale Shea Medical Center and then to the Fourth Avenue Jail. Her son was taken to his father's home.

She faces five counts of aggravated DUI because she had a child under the age of 15 in the vehicle, one count of resisting arrest, one count of interfering with an ignition interlock device and one count of endangerment when she was arrested, according to the report.

A toxicology report from the Arizona Department of Public Safety's Crime Lab showed Montez's blood-alcohol content was .215 at the time of the blood draw, more than 2 1/2 times the legal limit, according to sheriff's office documents. On June 5, the Maricopa County Attorney's Office requested the blood be resubmitted to the crime lab.